Nothing Is What It Seems
by cullenitis
Summary: Sarah's bedroom vanity mirror undergoes an interesting and enlightening change...


**Disclaimer: **_I do not own Labyrinth or anything else referenced._

* * *

It happened the second her new goblin friends had finally left her bedroom. Of all the things that could have happened in the wake of her triumph over the horrible Labyrinth, _this _was the _last_ thing Sarah Williams would have expected.

The vanity mirror in her bedroom changed.

Her double-take almost gave her whiplash. Instead of her reflection, the throne room of the castle beyond the Goblin City appeared behind the frame in less than a heartbeat.

Cautiously, Sarah approached the vanity and peered into the glass. A sharp gasp escaped her when she immediately caught sight of the Goblin King himself, lounging on the oddly-shaped chair and tapping a riding crop against his ankle.

When his bi-colored eyes didn't instantly turn in her direction, Sarah grew bold.

"Hey!" She called into the mirror, eager to get to the bottom of this strange new development.

Jareth didn't look up.

"HEY!" She repeated in a louder voice, rapping her knuckles on the glass. "HELLO?!"

Jareth just rested his cheek on his gloved fist. He looked like he was…sulking?

_He can't hear me! _Sarah mentally concluded in astonishment. _This is so strange. I wonder…can he can see me? _

She didn't have to wonder long, for Jareth's head suddenly jerked up making the poor girl squeak in alarm and almost duck below the vanity top.

_Don't know what I'm so jumpy about. _She thought as she righted herself. _I beat him, didn't I?_

She blinked in surprise once she saw what the Goblin King was _really _looking at.

In pairs, ten goblin subjects filed into the throne room from somewhere behind Sarah's invisible vantage point. She recognized them! They were the ones that just left her bedroom! Hoggle, Ludo, Sir Dydimus, the Wiseman, the Doormen and the Fireys were absent, but those were the same goblins alright.

"Lady (hic) very nice!" One of the goblins gushed. He had a large nose and a horned helmet. "She's not so (hic) bad after all! I like that drink she (hic) gave us. Yummy cokie-(hic)-colie!"

Sarah stifled a giggle. To be a gracious hostess, she'd snuck downstairs and brought up a pack of cokes for her rambunctious guests as they entertained themselves with a game of Scrabble. She'd take the guff from her parents about it in the morning. They already thought she was too much of a night owl.

"Yeah, lady was lots of fun too!" Another goblin croaked. This one was shorter, with grey hair and bulgy eyes. "I like Scrabble! Hope we can play again soo-"

_WHACK!_

Both the goblins and Sarah jumped at the harsh sound of Jareth's riding crop smacking angrily against the arm of the throne. The goblins froze and trembled in fear.

"OFF WITH YOU!" The Goblin King snarled fiercely, rising swiftly from his seat and advancing on the goblins in a severely threatening manner.

The terrified goblins scrambled for the exit as if their lives depended on it.

"OUT! OUT! _OUT!_" Jareth roared after them.

Sarah gaped in shock and indignation at his rudeness.

_Who the hell does he think he is? _Her mind raged. _I mean, I know he's supposed to be their king, but where does he come off being such a bully? They were just talking about what a good time they had! He really is nothing but a villain! Well one thing's for sure, I sure as heck don't need HIM in my life! He can drown in the Bog for all I care, the sore loser!_

"Jerk!" Sarah huffed at the mirror just before something caught her eye.

In the corner of the room, sat a tiny goblin she'd missed. It had a flat head and a sharp nose and chin. It's eyes were droopy and it was hunched over and swaying from side to side as if it was about to fall asleep at any given moment.

Sarah's eyes snapped to Jareth in a panic. He had just now noticed the last goblin as well and was glaring at it dangerously. The girl held her breath.

Then Jareth's face and shoulders relaxed as he let out a long, resigned sigh. Slowly, he walked over to the goblin and gently picked it up.

Sarah's mouth fell open as she witnessed the Goblin King cradle the exhausted little creature in his arms and carry him over to a soft-looking pile of straw. With the greatest of care, Jareth laid the goblin down and then covered him with one of the dusty blankets on the floor.

_Did…did he just…tuck in that goblin?_

Satisfied that his small subject was comfortable enough, Jareth stood up and strode over to the various torches and then candles dotting the throne room and began snuffing out their flames. When he reached the last one, a quiet and scratchy voice made him pause:

"G'night, yer majesty."

Sarah could have sworn she saw the ghost of a smirk flash across Jareth's lips.

"Good night." The Goblin King replied and blew out the last candle.

Sarah's stunned reflection faded back into the frame. Had it not been for her nearly 13-hour long adventure, she wouldn't have been able to sleep a wink that night.

* * *

The next night was even weirder. Her vanity mirror changed again as soon as she went upstairs to her room after dinner. After switching her light off and locking her door to prevent any interruptions, she eagerly sat on the stool and gazed into the glass again.

This time she saw Jareth standing at the top of the steps leading up to the castle. The goblins were packed in the town square below. The sheer number of them filled the streets as far as Sarah could see. On the ground, beside Jareth, was a giant leather bag.

"Alright," the Goblin King's voice rang out over the city, "you know the drill: place your taxes in the bag! At least _five_ coins per goblin! _No_ exceptions! Now get moving!"

Sarah's brow furrowed as she watched the sullen goblins climb the steps, single file, and deposit their five coins in the bag. The fuller the bag grew, the more incensed she became.

_How can he ask them for so much money?_

"Come on! Come on!" Jareth barked from time to time. "Hurry up!"

"I must have been imagining things last night." Sarah grumbled. _He's such a tyrant! He's really got some nerve forcing those goblins to pay such high taxes. Look at them! Their clothes are so ratty and they live in hovels! _

Finally, the last goblin dropped his coins in the bag and Jareth waved his hand over the brimming tax pile. Immediately, the bag transformed into a floating crystal. The Goblin King then swept his black cape around himself and the orb. Sarah and the goblins watched as the cape vanished and a barn owl soared into the air, clutching the crystal in its talons.

The mirror followed the bird as it flew higher and higher into the sky. Eventually, it sailed straight through a wall of clouds. For a few seconds, Sarah's mirror showed nothing but whiteness.

Confusion colored Sarah's face as she saw a large, Sears department store suddenly appear in the mirror. The barn owl swooped into view behind a cluster of bushes at the end of the parking lot. The bird morphed into Jareth again, but gone were his regal, otherworldly clothes, his eye-markings and rock star hair-do. Instead, his hair was cut short with a modern teased style in the front and he wore a grey business casual suit with a blue tie. With a twirl of his fingers, the crystal in his hand turned into a wallet. A completely lost Sarah watched as the disguised Goblin King strode away and disappeared into the store.

"What in the world-?" She whispered out loud.

The image shifted back to the packed Goblin City and in practically the bat of an eye, Jareth materialized at the top of the steps again and Sarah quirked an eyebrow at what was behind him.

Lumber, bricks, cement mix. _Piles _of it!

"Was it enough yer majesty?" A random goblin asked excitedly.

"More than enough." Jareth grinned, tossing the now quarter-full bag into the crowd. The goblins gleefully re-distributed the remaining coins amongst themselves.

_What do they need building materials for?_

"Now," Jareth's voice and expression hardened, "bring forth the prisoners!"

Sarah's blood ran cold as the mass to Jareth's left parted and a tall, skinny goblin guard led a chained Hoggle, Ludo and Sir Didymus to the center of the square.

A tense pause ensued. Sarah chewed her lip anxiously until Jareth finally broke the silence.

"Messrs. Hoggle, Ludo and Sir Didymus," Jareth's tone dripped with venom, "are you all aware of the penalty for _treason_?"

"Ye-yes, sir." Hoggle gulped.

Ludo nodded.

"I understand completely, my lord." Sir Didymus said solemnly before throwing himself to his knees. "Strike me down, your majesty, for I am unfit to live!" He pleaded dramatically.

"NO!" Sarah cried,

"As _tempting_ as I find that request, I'm afraid I have a much more _practical _punishment in mind." Jareth sneered. "For your crimes against your brethren and king, you all will spend the next three days removing every single rock from the city and you are _forbidden _to _call _them." He ordered, eyeing Ludo pointedly.

For a brief moment, Sarah didn't understand what was going on. Then she looked at the goblins and their city again, closely.

She hadn't quite noticed before, but almost all of the goblins were patched up with bloody bandages and covered in bruises. There was considerable damage to the Goblin City as well. The rocks Ludo had called were still scattered about the streets and some were lodged in the walls of the buildings. Many of the houses were either missing considerable chunks of their structure, or had already collapsed.

_The building materials! _

"I should horsewhip you traitors." Jareth hissed, baring his teeth.

"W-we were only tryin' to b-be kind to the girl, your m-majesty." Hoggle stammered timidly.

"LOOK AT THIS MESS!" Jareth thundered, gesturing furiously around him. "LOOK AT ALL THE DESTRUCTION YOU AND THAT DAMN GIRL HAVE CAUSED! LOOK AT YOUR FELLOW GOBLINS! IT'S A MERCY NO ONE WAS KILLED, BUT COUNTLESS HAVE BEEN INJURED! TELL ME HOG-BRAIN, WAS YOUR FRIENDSHIP WITH HER WORTH ALL THE PAIN YOU'VE INFLICTED ON YOUR _FAMILY_?!"

"F-forgive us, your highness." Hoggle murmured, bowing his head in shame along with his two companions.

Sarah felt tears stream down her cheeks as guilt consumed her. The Goblin City was in shambles and her friends were in trouble…all because of _her_. _She_ was the reason the goblins had to pay so much for repairs, _she_ was the reason Hoggle, Ludo and Sir Didymus were arrested.

_But, but I thought that's what I was supposed to do…to win. What's with all these horrible repercussions? Nobody told me the rules…but…Jareth did warn Hoggle not to help me…_

Jareth turned away from the three prisoners with an arrogant snort and marched up the steps towards the castle. "You fools have three days to complete your task. If I see a single rock in the city after your time is up, it'll mean one hundred years in the Bog! The rest of you, get started on the reconstruction. I have other, more _pressing_ matters to deal with."

Sarah leaned forward curiously when she saw Jareth meet the Wiseman at the top of the stairs. They were too far away for her to see clearly or hear their voices, but she _did_ see Jareth pull something out of his pocket and extend his hand to the old advisor. The Wiseman stepped forward, but shook his head at the Goblin King, patted the hand presented to him, and just walked away.

At that, the mirror returned to normal.

* * *

The following night, Sarah waited up until almost two in the morning for the next…_showing_.

On the other side of the glass was a large stone room. The walls, floor and ceiling were a rich onyx color and carved perfectly smooth. The lavish furniture and features were a sparkling silver. The intricate candle sconces bathed the room in romantic light. A massive and irresistibly cozy-looking bed levitated three feet in the air. There was a gorgeous fireplace, antique chairs and sofas, an organized desk and full bookshelf, a-

Before Sarah could examine the room any further, the painted black mahogany doors on the far side of the bedchamber, suddenly swung open. She was shocked to see two tall goblins helping Jareth walk into the room. The Goblin King's arms were thrown around the shoulders of his aids for support, his head hung forward and the toe of his boots occasionally dragged sluggishly.

"You shouldn't overwork yourself, your majesty." The goblin on Jareth's left observed.

"I simply miscalculated the number of wounded," Jareth mumbled, "I'll be right as rain in the morning."

"But your magic is so precious, sire." The same goblin continued. "You always tell us how important it is to be self-sufficient."

"Exactly." Jareth said weakly. "Which is why I let you all handle the reconstruction on your own, but we were running out of bandages and antiseptic and there was not enough time to gather money and go to the Aboveground to fetch more. They needed urgent medical care. I had no other choice."

"I know, your highness." The goblin conceded. "We were only worried because you hadn't quite recovered from your game with the gir-"

Abruptly, Jareth tore himself away from his subjects and straightened his clothes.

"No _child_ can hinder _me_." The Goblin King growled almost to himself. "I just need a bit of rest. That will be all."

Once the goblins bowed and left the room, Jareth's knees gave out and he collapsed on the bed, making Sarah involuntarily cry out in concern.

Just before the scene ended, she saw Jareth reach into a vest pocket and pull out something, but the angle of her view prevented her from seeing what he was so longingly staring at in the palm of his hand.

And so it was for the next three years: Sarah would go to her room in the evening and watch various moments in the life of the Goblin King. Sometimes the visions were long, other times were disappointingly short. They could come almost as soon as she closed the door to her room, or deep into the early morning hours.

She didn't care.

She grew to _love _watching the events before her. Every night she learned something new about Jareth and how he ruled his kingdom. She saw him settle disputes amongst his subjects with incredible patience, help rebuild the Goblin City and tend to the Labyrinth's general upkeep. Occasionally, he would sing and dance for his goblins and surprisingly, it was quite rare for him to lose his temper at their never-ending rowdiness and sentence any of them to the Bog. He would walk through his Labyrinth for hours, he would read constantly and play various instruments. He was even a talented painter!

But her absolute favorite thing to see, was the way he acted with the wished away children.

Sarah practically melted at how Jareth would cuddle and talk to the babies when they cried too much. He'd even bottle feed them and change their diapers, as tenderly as if he were their own father!

Then there was the way…he acted around the wishers themselves. Granted, there was barely a handful of them, male and female, ranging from ages as young as ten to their late teens, but…somehow…Jareth just didn't seem very interested in them. He never randomly appeared in the Labyrinth to deter them, he never sent them a tempting _gift_, and there was never a climactic, one-on-one showdown at the end. He just _gave _them the child and that was that. No songs, no warnings, no appeals, no vague promises. _Nothing_. And if the wisher lost, it was much the same. Jareth would simply wipe their memory and send them home and the child left behind would painlessly transform into a goblin. He wouldn't flaunt his victory with a diatribe or even laugh maniacally.

But when it was all over, when the winner or loser was gone, the one thing the Goblin King never failed to do was fish that same mysterious object from before out of his pocket and stare at it.

Sarah burned with interest. He always held it at an angle where she couldn't see it! And…and he always seemed…so _sad _when he looked at it. The corners of his mouth would pull into a frown and his eyes would glisten with unshed tears. Her chest always ached when she saw him sometimes hold it in a loose fist and then raise his hand up to press his lips to his fingers. Desperate to comfort him in some way, Sarah would often reach out and stroke the glass over Jareth's sorrowful face.

As time went by, Sarah realized how _lonely _he was. Poor Jareth was constantly surrounded by cackling goblins, nasty fairies and the wild Firey gang. The runners and the wished away children were his only…human contact and they were just temporary. If the runner won or lost, they'd be sent home regardless, and the babe would either go with them or instantly transform into a goblin. She'd lost count of how many times she'd seen Jareth sitting in his room brooding…all alone.

All through the rest of high school, Hoggle, Ludo, Sir Didymus, and a few other goblins and Fireys would visit her, but she never mentioned her vanity mirror's new ability.

Honestly, she was afraid that if she said anything, it would _stop _and she'd never see Jareth again…and the last thing she wanted, was to let him go. She _wanted _to see him. She _needed _to see him. The magnitude of those sentiments grew stronger and stronger, every day.

* * *

Sarah nervously paced her dorm room as the last of the sun's rays filtering in through her open window, slipped away into the evening.

Today had been her first day of college. She'd finished moving in a week ago, but because of what she saw last night, she had a job to do, _very _soon.

Yesterday, when her mirror changed, she saw Jareth aimlessly wandering through the Escher Room and he was fiddling with that unidentified item again. His melancholy eyes scanned the area as if he were searching for something.

And then it happened.

He flipped under a ledge and she finally caught a glimpse of what he'd been secretly keeping for three years.

It was her _ring_! The one she'd given to the Wiseman as contribution!

Words couldn't describe the excitement that flowed through her at the discovery. That _had_ to mean he at least _missed_ her. That she was more important to him that all the other runners. That maybe he had…_some_ genuine feelings for her.

Sarah made her decision right away at that point. She had to see him. For _real_. She'd been so wrong about him. He wasn't a bad guy. It really was all an act to satisfy her imaginative expectations.

She never would have dreamed that she'd hurt him by leaving…

It was the moment of truth now. She was going to try and make it up to him…if he'd let her.

Planting her feet, Sarah ignored her shaking knees and took a deep breath.

_Please let this work!_

"I wish that the Goblin King was here with me, right now."

The lamp on her nightstand went out, a gust of wind poured into the room and the shadows slid across the floor to a point. Sarah watched as they coagulated and rose up into a tall, solid mass. The blackness unfolded like wings and there he was at last.

Jareth stood before her just like he did three years ago: sparkles fluttering in the air as his dark cape billowed around his shoulders. He seemed confused for a moment, until he saw her.

Sarah bit her lip as Jareth's face became hard as stone. She twiddled her fingers and forced herself to speak.

"H-hi, Jareth."

He didn't answer, but his eyes were calculating. Like a cat sizing up another tom.

"Um," she continued, "…it's good to see you again."

Again, he remained silent, but she was almost positive she saw one of his eyebrows twitch upwards.

"Today w-was my first day at-at college." She stammered, feeling more and more foolish. "So far, I really love it."

"…" The Goblin King swiftly glanced around the room.

"All my classes are great." She went on, crossing to her desk to pick up a small, paperback book. "There's this play analysis class I'm taking and we're studying _The Taming of the Shrew_. You know, by William Shakespeare?"

"…"

"Uh, yeah. Anyway, the school's going to put on the play at the end of the semester and auditions are next month. I'm gonna try out for Katherina." She turned the book over in her hands and opened it up to a dog-eared page. "I thought it be a good idea to do the first scene between her and Petruchio for my audition. What do you think?"

"…"

Sarah swallowed the dryness in her throat. It was now or never.

"I was…wondering if you'd help me memorize my lines and…and read Petruchio's part." She whispered shyly, offering Jareth the script. "I…I thought it'd be… somewhat…_fitting_."

Jareth stared at her for a long minute before he casually took the script from her and tossed it onto the bed.

Sarah winced at the automatic sting of rejection, only to freeze as the Goblin King suddenly grinned and stepped so close to her, barely an inch lay between them.

"I will attend her here," Jareth purred as the tip of his nose grazed across her forehead, "and woo her with some spirit when she comes." He moved around her at a snail's pace, brushing his hands along the skin of her arms. "Say that she rail; why then I'll tell her plain: she sings as sweetly as a nightingale. Say that she frown, I'll say she looks as clear as morning roses newly wash'd with dew." His warm breath tickled her neck and she felt his fingers sift through her hair. "Say she be mute and will not speak a word; then I'll commend her volubility. And say she uttereth piercing eloquence: if she do bid me pack, I'll give her thanks, as though she bid me stay by her a week. If she deny to wed, I'll crave the day when I shall ask the banns and when be married." His lips brushed along her temple and Sarah's eyes fluttered closed in ecstasy. "But here she comes; and now, Petruchio, speak. Good morrow, Kate; for that's your name, I hear."

Of course, the lines were a bit out of context, but Sarah still hummed drunkenly in response and her palms itched with the desire to touch him.

"Precious," Jareth chuckled quietly, "that's your cue."

"Huh?" She asked, thankfully coming back to her senses. "Oh! Um, uh…Well have you heard…but something hard of h-hearing: They call me Katherina that do talk of me."

As their rehearsal went on deep into the night, Sarah smiled in triumph. She'd managed to find another remarkable friend in the Goblin King she'd misjudged and left behind in the Labyrinth. And if her assumptions were correct about his feelings, she might even get her ring back soon…on her _left _hand.

* * *

**A/N: **_What do you think?! Please tell me! I don't care if all you say is :) or 3, it all means the world to me!_


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